Putters, Personalized

One Mechanical Engineering senior is taking a swing at entrepreneurship by combining his two passions: engineering and golf.

Inspired by boutique companies marketing to younger golfers on social media, Jimmy McCullough ’24 ME set out to create a company of his own. He tapped into his manufacturing know-how developed as a Mechanical Engineering student while drawing on business skills instilled through his Engineering Entrepreneurship minor. The result is Albatross, a line of handcrafted golf putters personalized to each order. The stainless-steel putters, which can be customized with hand-stamped lettering or branded with logo inserts, are largely produced by McCullough in the Villanova Engineering Machine Shop.

“I knew I wanted to go into engineering, but I’ve always been interested in business as well,” says McCullough, who grew up in King of Prussia, Pa., with two parents who are business owners. “I was happy Villanova offered the Engineering Entrepreneurship minor—a lot of colleges actually don’t let you mix business and engineering together.”

To start the venture, McCullough reached out to the Innovation Fund through Villanova’s Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. He received two rounds of funding—first $250, then $2,000—to help in buying materials and building a prototype. Now, with the putter’s design solidified, he is focusing on the business side of Albatross, both through his Engineering Entrepreneurship courses and in his free time. The hope is to partner with an established golf brand to create a putter that meets their aesthetic.

“I’m learning so much from this experience, like marketing, finance, accounting and, obviously, manufacturing issues, like the supply chain,” McCullough says. “One of the goals in business is to make it look simple to the customer. In reality, there’s so much going on.”